Week 9

I enjoyed the sticky note predictions paired with the gallery walk. I think the ‘I notice’ and ‘I wonder’ presents a good opportunity for students to have an open and creative discussion in small-groups, pairs, or whole-group. The map activity was a nice way to introduce map instruction. Specifically,  I thought that the opportunity to compare the two maps was a strong closure to the activity. It allowed us to compare and contrast the maps, but also to explore our inferences and ‘I wonder/notice’ observations. What resonated with me the most from our class was the closure activity. I liked that the 12 questions provided student choice and a variety of angles to communicate our thoughts. Having a variety of choices will hopefully deter students from repeating after their peers, demonstrating a lack of creativity and critical thinking in their own responses.

In reflection of our semester thus far, I feel as though we’ve spent so much time on teaching social studies to upper elementary. I don’t feel like I’ve had an opportunity to create a toolbox for the lower elementary grades regarding this content. While I understand that the more in-depth strategies used in social studies are targeted in the higher grades, I’d like to learn about other K-2 strategies that relate to the skills progression chart that was provided. While I think that the activities in the classroom are beneficial for teaching students how to ask questions, make observations, and infer about primary sources, I am starting to feel as though we are engaging in very similar activities each week. I did enjoy the Jamestown activity but I just feel like it was an extension of the same thing we’ve been doing all semester. I would like to have an opportunity to learn more about specific content areas in social studies with a variety of creative assignments for instruction.  I think overall, I just want to be challenged more instructionally in the classroom.